This invention is related to the technology for circulating electronic chips through communication networks.
It is a well-known sales promotion method by a vendor or by a shopping area to distribute discount coupons or vouchers at the purchase of commodities by a user. The user can buy commodities at a discounted price at the next purchase by using such discount coupons or vouchers. Buying intention of users can be further accelerated by specifying the valid period for such coupons or vouchers or by limiting applicable commodities, which results in the enhanced sales promotion results.
Recent rapid introduction of computer networks or the Internet throughout the world has enabled services such as on-line shopping in a virtual mall on the Internet. It is also an already-known system where a server computer issues ticket data which are equivalent to the discount coupons mentioned above when a user orders a commodity using a Web purchase form, and the server stores and manages such data for each user in a database. In this system, the user can buy commodities at a discounted price according to the amount of accumulated ticket data, by notifying the system his or her ID number.
Such conventional systems, and technologies used for such systems, however, have a problem in that the ticket data distribution conditions should be predetermined according to commodities or vendors, thus limiting the sales promotion flexibility and effectiveness. For example, it is difficult for such systems to realize a period-limited sales promotion campaign targeting users who have ticket data already.
The purpose of this invention is to solve such problems of conventional systems and technologies, aiming at the realization of on-line discount functions that can support flexible and powerful sales promotion.
This invention is related to the technology for circulating electronic chips. By using the technology of this invention, electronic chips are issued as the response to predetermined operation by a user, according to predetermined issuance conditions. More specifically, electronic chips are issued, for example, as the result of playing a game or purchasing a commodity by the user. Conditions for the chip issuance may include the exchange rate between the score of the game played and the currency, and the valid period of chips issued.
The user becomes possible to use electronic chips according to predetermined conditions of electronic chip consumption, at the user""s predetermined action of playing a game or purchasing a commodity. Such conditions include the exchange rate between the electronic chip unit and the currency unit, and the valid period of chips. The user will be provided with the information of user""s electronic chips, such as the present balance, the valid period and the present exchange rate of chips.
Electronic chip issuance for and consumption by each user are recorded and managed as the record of the user. Chip issuance conditions and chip consumption conditions for the user are determined according to such record of electronic chip issuance and consumption.
Moreover, a record of predetermined chip issuance or predetermined chip consumption by the user may be further recorded and managed, in order that chip issuance conditions or chip consumption conditions can be calculated from the record of such predetermined chip issuance or consumption histories. Additionally, such chip issuance conditions or chip consumption conditions may be calculated as common conditions for all users, or as personal conditions for each user.
The above explained structure of this invention can be further extended in such a way that electronic chips are issued based on electronic chip issuance conditions in response to the user operation of a game, and an advertisement which is related to the game operation is displayed as the response of the operation by the user.
Through the invention described here, a user can play a network game such as bingo by using a game client terminal placed in a shop after shopping or enjoying pinball game and acquire electronic chips according to the score of the network game. The user can afterwards order various kinds of commodities using a Web-POS(point of sales) client terminal placed in that shop or in another shop, and can receive discount by using electronic chips issued for the user. Electronic chips can thus be effectively used for sales promotion according to this invention.
The exchange rate for the electronic chip issuance, or the exchange rate from the game score to the electronic chips as a more specific example, and the exchange rate for the electronic chip consumption, or the exchange rate from the electronic chips to the currency at purchasing commodities as a more specific example, can be dynamically changed according to various conditions by using the electronic chip circulation server apparatus of this invention.
Accordingly, various kinds of effective sales promotion means can be generated such aggressive sales promotion to long time subscribers or to users who make frequent access, sales promotion enforcement for infrequently accessed games, sales promotion support to shops recording poor sales results, or consumption acceleration for electronic chips which have a short remnant valid period.
Also, user researches. based on the contents of an operation record management module become possible by applying this invention.
Furthermore, various applications can become possible by applying this invention. For example, a subscriber can receive electronic chips as the result of playing a game or applying for a quiz or a questionnaire through the Internet from his/her PC, with advertisement displays on the PC related to sponsors of such games, quizzes or questionnaires. In this case, the subscriber becomes willing to play a game or applying a quiz or a questionnaire expecting for electronic chip acquirement, and the subscriber automatically see the advertisement pages on the browsing screen of the PC, thus generating large sales promotion effects.